Have you ever bought an item that needed to be put together and then decided not to follow the instructions that were provided with it? Maybe you figured you could figure it all out without those instructions. After all, what could be so difficult about it? I am the first to admit that I have done this on more than one occasion and the result has always been the same. Halfway through putting the item together, I discover something has gone wrong. The item is not looking the way it’s supposed to, or I discover a part that I forgot to install, and I have to take the thing apart and start all over. Frustrating!
I have come to learn that instructions are given to us for a reason. When we follow instructions, things are far more likely to turn out the way we want them to. We are far less likely to end up frustrated or having to spend time correcting our mistakes. This is true not just for things we assemble, but for life as well. God has given us instructions to follow. Those instructions are His Word. In His Word, we find all that we need to live the best life we can live, the life that God intends for us to live. His Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105). His Word shows us the way in which we should walk.
God created us and He knows what is best for us. He promises to direct our paths when we trust in Him, in His ways, and in His instructions, rather than trying to do things our own way, (Proverbs 3:5-6). When we follow His instructions, His Word, we will find that things in life will go much easier for us. Scripture says, “Those who love your instructions have great peace and do not stumble (Psalm 119:165, NLT).” That is a truth that we can count on!
Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
A Worshiper's Journal 